Speaking of growing up, I can no longer deny the fact that this little baby is nearly a year old. 12 days from now will be his birthday. I can barely believe a year has gone by. We haven't done any proper planning for the grand celebration of the first year milestone yet, but as the reality hits me, I think I should at least send out some birthday invitations. I hope people will still be excited for his birthday even though we are postponing it three weeks. I am so curious to see what kind of birthday celebration (and when) he will want when he is old enough to pick for himself.
Technically, 12 days from now marks the end of the 'worry' stage. No more worrying about SIDS, no more worrying about milk and eggs and the horrors that are honey. Baby is supposed to be mature enough to handle the full onslaught of everything the world can offer in food and sleep. We've been doing milk and egg already for a while (in cooking) so I haven't been concerned with that, but I have been super careful to avoid honey. It will be strange now to not have to worry about ingredients. It will be even stranger to offer him a glass of cow's milk to drink. I'm slightly offended that I even have to do it - like somehow my milk isn't good enough for him. But the truth is, my milk ISN'T good enough for him now. It's providing excellent antibodies for him still, and helping to regulate his blood sugars and such, but he will need more than I can offer him.
Breastfeeding at this point has become...interesting. I find a lot of people assume that I will stop breastfeeding now. That he will 'self-wean'. That the end is imminent. If you see how this boy checks out my chest first thing in the morning and last thing at night, you would realize that there is no self-weaning in our near future, and that the process won't be a fast one when I choose to do it. There is the chance he may still decide for himself, but I just don't see it right now. The World Health Organization recommends breastfeeding up to 24 months or longer. I don't know if I will make it that long, but right now it seems way too early to me to stop. He still feels like a baby to me. I hope the pressure from others won't be too much, but if it is, I will deal with it. I never anticipated this as an issue because I figured he would self-wean - it's what a lot of people I know say their babies did. One thing I have come to accept - learning to be a parent and dealing with all the new parents items is a non-stop work in progress.
By the way - check out the newest YouTube video (link on the right) where Calvin discovers the Christmas Fart Machine and, without prompting from us, laughs his head off at it. It was hard to capture on video the laughing episodes, but you will get the idea.
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